Democrat Eric Swalwell represents California's 14th Congressional District. 

Dear friends,

Last night, I joined 314 of my colleagues in the House of Representatives in supporting the Bipartisan Budget Agreement, put forth by President Biden and House Republican leaders.

I’ll be honest, this was not a perfect deal. But by refusing to raise the debt limit as Congress has done 78 times before, Republicans continued to put our economy at risk, a problem that Democrats were forced to solve.

If you owe money, you need to pay it. And it is Congress’ responsibility to pay our past bills that have come due, while reducing our future deficit, lowering costs, and creating better-paying jobs. Republicans were willing to dine and ditch on the American economy — leaving Social Security and Medicare recipients, and our veterans with the bill. I was not.

Once again, Democrats stepped up for the good of the nation to pass legislation to avert a catastrophic default. For weeks, Speaker McCarthy trashed Democrats and President Biden. But, when the rubber met the road, McCarthy was not able to deliver his end of the deal without relying heavily on Democratic votes.

In doing so, Democrats pushed back on extreme Republican demands to gut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, veterans’ health care, historic infrastructure investments, and climate protections.

With this vote, the American people saw a sharp contrast in governing styles. Democrats delivered competence while Republicans brought chaos. I promise to continue fighting for hardworking families and ensure a brighter future for all Americans.

Sincerely,

Rep. Eric Swalwell